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Gorman: Don't Want To See Celtics Broken Up At Deadline

BOSTON (CBS) -- The Boston Celtics hit the All-Star break on a high note, pulling out a dramatic overtime win over the L.A. Clippers on Wednesday night.

Defense was optional at the TD Garden as the C's beat the Clippers 139-134, with All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas scoring a game-high 36 points. The Celtics had a pretty balanced attack with six players in double figures, but it was Evan Turner leading the way in overtime with seven of his 14 points.

The team is starting to become a force, and at 32-23 they are third in the in the Eastern Conference. But with the trade deadline just a week away, there may be changes coming to a roster that is currently gelling so well.

C's play-by-play man Mike Gorman hopes that isn't the case.

"I hope Danny [Ainge] lets them go as far as they go," Gorman told 98.5 The Sports Hub's Toucher & Rich on Thursday. "I don't want to change this.

"Danny is always trying to make the team better, but with that aside, it's not as if they're .500 or less. They're nine games over .500. You can let things ride," he said. "Your chips, the draft picks, will only gain in value as we go forward. You can let it ride right now; people like this team and don't want to see it broken up."

Gorman has never been a fan of Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins, and doesn't think Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari would be enough of an upgrade for the price Ainge would likely have to play. He's intrigued by the possibility of adding Hawks center Al Horford, who he believes would make Boston a threat to win the Eastern Conference, but not if the price gets too high.

"The two signature wins of this team have come over the last five days, why mess with that?"

While Boston's suffocating defense from early in the season has taken a bit of a backseat as of late, re-focusing on that end of the floor will only make the team more dangerous.

"That's their identity and who they believe they are, right down to a guy like Isaiah Thomas, who you think of primarily an offensive player, but he'll tell you they're only as good as they are defensively," he said. "I think they can get better. You play Cleveland or Toronto in the playoffs and you're going to be an underdog, but anyone else in the East at worst the Celtics are a pick 'em."

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